Fake cigarettes sold to children in Middlesbrough

CHILDREN as young as seven are being sold fake cigarettes at dozens of “tab houses” in Middlesbrough, officials have warned.

The counterfeit fags pose a greater threat to smokers’ health than the real thing, consumer watchdogs say.

Middlesbrough Council’s trading standards team has subjected counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco to chemical analysis.

The tests have shown the fake tobacco often contains an even more damaging cocktail of chemicals than their shop bought counterparts.

Checks revealed the counterfeit cigarettes seized contained an average of 63% more tar than genuine products - with figures as high as 130% being recorded.

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Levels of carbon monoxide given off by the fake cigarettes were also significantly higher - samples produced nearly 30% more on average reaching a high of 80%. Tests for other harmful substances showed the fakes also contained up to three times as much cadmium, seven times as much arsenic, and 10 times as much lead as legal alternatives.

Over the last year, officers have raided nine properties and seized a large quantity of cigarettes and tobacco.

John Wells, the council’s Community Protection Department operations managers, said Trading Standards believed there were more than 50 “cigarette houses” in the town - adding Trading Standards believed children as young as seven were customers.